Automatic reversing mechanism



(L-w. BERTHOLD. AUTOMATIC REVERSING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 3, 1919. I lsfly7 fia- Patented Aug. 8, 1922,

3 SHEETSSHEET11.

a. w. BERTHOLD. 7 AUTOMATIC REVERS|NG MECHANISM.

APPLICATION H LED APR- 31' 1919. 1,424,797. I

Patented Aug. 8, 1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' K J/V/V I 5 a 50 46' .e. W. B'ERTHOLD.' AUTOMATIC REVERSING MECHANISM.APPLICATION FILED APR. 3, I919 Patented Aug. 8,1922,

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

v r v v r v r I I Q i1 I I an jlHOLD, a citizen of the 4 mg atrChloago,1n the county of Cook and driven shaft carrying the rotary arrangementmodified m w v 1 is ii and AUTOMATIC REVERSING MECHANISM.

Application filed April 3,

T 0 all whom-it may concern Be it known that 1, Gosrsvn -W. BER

United Stat-es, resid- State of Illinois, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Automatic Reversing Mechanism, of which thefollowing is a description- My invention relates to improvements inautomatic reversing mechanisms, and more particularly to such mechanismsas are .ap- .plied to power-driven washing-machines and the like,,wherein the rotationot the clothes washer is internnttently changedfrom one direction to the other.

The object of my invention is to provide a device of the characterdescribed, that will becomparatively simple in construction andoperation, reliable in its operation, and durable in use. To this end myinvention consists in the novel construction, and combination of partsshown and described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate like orcorresponding parts Figure 1 is a side elevation of my-improvedreversing mechanism showing in section a portion of a wash tub ,wall towhich p I va wall 8 between said grooves, as clearly of said non-rotat-Fig. 7 is a detail view showing the construction of said plunger;

Fig. 8 is a detail elevation showing a slidable clutch employed in themechanism;

Fig. 9 is a vertical section taken through said clutch on line 9-9 ofFig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a vertical section showing a form of mechanism broken away toexpose a plunger mounted therein;

specification o'f'Lcttcrs Patent. y 'iggnted fl ng; 8 1922 1919. SerialNo. 287,220.

r Fig. 11 is a plan section taken on line 1 1 .11 pr Fig. 10;

r Fig; 12 is a vertical section showinganother form of mechanism;

Fig. 13 is a plan section 13--13 of Fig. 12;

Fig. 1 1 is a detail vertical section taken on line 14-14 of Fig. 12,showing the con struction of a non-rotatable member;

Fig. 15 is a vertical section showing still another form of mechanism;

Fig. 16 is a plansection taken on line 1616 of Fig. 15; v 7

Figs. 17 and 18 are detail perspective views showing parts employed inthe last named term of mechanism;

Fig. 19 is an enlarged view of a construction similar to that shown inFig. 3 on another such line; I

And Fig. 20 is a detail elevation showing a splined driven shaftemployed in the various mechanisms.

The preferred form of construction as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3comprises a driven shaft 1 and a slidable sleeve clutch 2 splinedthereto, a spline or key 3 projecting from said shaft being provided forthis purpose. Said clutch is provided with a keyway 4-, extending teeth5 at each end thereof, a screw-threaded periphery 6, a pair of annularpositioning grooves 7, and

taken on line shown in Figs. 3, 8 and 9.

The clutch 2 is adapted to reciprocate between oppositely rotatingdriving gears 9 and 10,.which are loosely mounted .on shaft 1 andprovided on their faces with opposed pins 11, as shown in Fig. 4:, orequivalent members, for alternate engagement with teeth 5 on the ends ofsaid clutch' Yieldable positioning means for the clutch 2 comprise oneor more balls 12 arranged in shaft 1 for cooperation with grooves 7 inthe clutch, a coil spring 13 being interposed, in the preferredconstruction shown, between said balls for exert- Ing an outwardpressure thereon, as shown in Figs. 2, 10, 12 and 15.

The gears 9 and 10 are driven in opposite directions by means of a bevelpinion 1 1 meshing therewith, carried by a stub shaft 15 journaled in asuitable casing 16, said shaft, in the form shown in Figs. land 2,

tions 33 are provided forretaining the plungers in position in shifter29,

also carrying a driven spur gear 17 meshing with a driving spur gear 18,which latter is loosely mounted on a driving shaft 19 journaled in saidcasing and arranged parallel to shaft 15. A tooth clutch 20 is formedintegral with or secured to the gear 18 for engagement with a toothclutch 21 splined to the shaft 19 by means of a Spline or key 22, theclutch 21 being provided with a grooved collar 23 for cooperation with ashift lever 24 fulcrumed between lugs 25, which project from thecasing16, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. By this means the reversing mechanism maybe'thrown into or out of operation.

The casing 16 is secured to a circular plate 26 and a wash tub or othersuitable wall 27 by means of bolts 28, the shaft 1 being journaled inthe casing 16 and in saidplate, as shown in Fig. 3.

In order to effect a reciprocation of the clutch 2 for alternateengagement'with the driving gears 9 and 10, a non-rotatable clutchshifter 29 is internally threaded to mesh with the threaded periphery 6of the sleeve clutch 2, in the forms shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 19,there being an arm 30 on said shifter projecting into a groove 31 formedin casing 16 for preventing rotation of the shifter. The shifter 29 isprovided with resilient means for throwing the clutch 2 in the oppositedirection consisting of spring pressed plungers 32, (Figs. 5, 6, 7),preferably having anti-friction balls 321, or

equivalent means, mounted therein in constantlcontact with one or theother of the inner faces of the gears 9 and 10. In the form shown, thereduced portions 33 of the plungers 32 are surrounded by coil springs34, and cotter-pins 35 passed through por- In the various modified formsof construction, the bevel pinion 14 is shown on a driving shaft 36, andthe shaft 1 is shown with a single spring-pressed ball 12, but theessential difference between these forms and the preferred form residesin the modifications in the clutch shifters employed, which will bedescribed hereinafter.

A casing 37 provided in the modified form, shown in Figs. 10 and 11, isprovided with an inwardly extending fixed arm 38, which engages atransverse groove 39 formed in the clutch shifter 40 for preventingrota- "tionj thereof. This shifter is otherwise similar to shifter 29,and functions in the same manner.

A casing 41 provided in the modified form, shown in Figs. 12 and 13, isprovided with an inwardly extending arm 42 having a bifurcated end 43for the reception of a projection 44 on the clutch shifter 45. Theprojection 44 thus confined, prevents the rotation of the shifter, andthe perforated lugs 46 projecting from opposite sides thereof areprovided to receive the free ends of wire spring arms 47 preferablycarried by screws 48, which are rigidly secured in the wall of casing41. The spring arms 47 perform thesame function as springs. 34 in thepreferred form, and balls 49 inserted in the sides of shifter 45correspond with the anti-friction balls 321 in the former construction.It will be noted that the holes 50 of the perforated lugs 46 aresomewhat larger than the springs 4'7, and thatv they diverge outwardly,as indicated by dotted lines in Figs. 12 and 14, in order to permit freeaction of said spring arms therein.

The construction shown in Figs. 15 and 16 comprises a casing 51 havingaforked arm 52 pivotally' connected thereto by means of a pivot pin 53,said arm extending inwardly and being provided with a recess 54 for thereception of a projection 55 formed on a clutch shifter 56. In thismanner rotation of said shifter is prevented, and in order to provide anoperative connection for reciprocating said shifter, diametricallyopposed ears 57 are formed thereon to receive the rounded ends 58 offorked arm 52. Inclined contact surfaces 59, or equivalent means, areprovided at the other end of arm 52 for cooperation with spring-pressedplungers 60 which constitute, in this form, r the necessary resilientmeans for mamta1ning the clutch 2 in operative position.

The operation of the mechanism is as follows: Assuming that the bevelgear 9 is rotating in a clockwise direction, as viewed from the left inFig. 19, and that clutch 2 then engaged with said gear, is provided witha right-hand thread, then the clutch shifter 29 will be drawn towardsaid gear and said clutch operatively maintained in such position by theretaining force of the ball 12 in the proper groove '7'. This actionwill compress the springs 34 in the plungers 32, and tend to force ball12 inwardly and up the incline at the right of wall 8. Such action ofball 12 will not beeffected, however, until the movement to the left ofshifter 29 is sufficient to produce a tension in springs 34 great enoughto overcome the retaining force of ball 12, whereupon clutch 2 will snapor jump to the right and engage pins 11 of bevel gear 10, rotating ina'direction opposite to the gear 9, and the shifter 29 will reboundtoward the opposite position. During this movement, the wall 8 will haveforced ball 12 inwardly, against the resistance of the spring 13, andthen passing'over the wall, will permit the ball to move out wardly intothe groove '7 at the left.

It will be noted that the first ha-lf of the...

movement of the clutch '2 must be effected solely by the force ofsprings 34, which force is opposed bythecom'pression of spring 13.During the last half of this movement, howeven-springs Sriand 18cooperate, since each are expanding I or rebounding 'to their nor- 7 malcondition.

and clutch 2 limited to the PI'GCISG'ClGtLllS of constructionsetfort'ln-but desire to avail myself ofsuch variations andmodifications as come within the-scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention,

I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. .In a device ofthe-kind described and in combinatlon, a driven shaft, two rotatablemembers loosely mounted-on said shaft, in-

termediate means between the'two members so arrangedthatwhen-either ofsaidmembers is rotated the other will be rotated in the oppositedirect-ion, a cooperating clutch member slidably mounted upon the shaftpositioned between the two members, ar-

rangedto alternately engage them, and a co operating encircling-memberaxially movable on-the clutch member so as to be reciprocated therebyand arranged to alternately shift the clutch member into engagement withsaid rotatable members.

2. In a device of'the-kind described and in combination, a drivenshaft,two members loosely mounted and rotatable upon the shaft, intermediatemeans between the two members so arranged that when either of saidmembers is rotated the other will be rotated in the opposite direction,a cooperating clutch member slidably mounted upon the shaftpositionedbetween the two members arranged to alternately engage them, and acooperating member in threaded engagement with the clutch memberarrangedto alternately shift the clutch member into engage ment with therotatable members.

3. A reversing mechanism comprising a driven shaft, a pair of oppositelyrotating members loosely mounted on said shaft, an externally screwthreaded clutch splined to said shaft for alternate engagement with saidmembers, yieldable means interposed between said shaft and clutch forretaining the latter in engagement with one of the members, andresilient means controlled by said screw thread for shifting saidclutch.

4. A reversing mechanism comprising a driven shaft and a slidable clutchsplined thereto, a pair of oppositely rotating driving members arrangedon said shaft between which said .clutch is adapted 1110 reciprocate foralternate engagement therewith, yieldablemeans for operativelypositioningsaid clutch on said shaft, anon-rotatable clutch shift-er inthreaded connection with said clutch, and resillient means cooperatingwith saidshifter for moving said clutch.

5. A reversing mechanism comprising a driven shaft and oppositelyrotating driving members loosely mounted'thereon, pins on saiddrivingmembers, a double-acting clutch splined to said shaft and having teeth:for alternate engagementwith said .pins, a spring-pressed ballinterposed between said shaft and clutch, the latter having positioninggrooves for the reception of said ball, a non-rotatable clutch shifterin threaded connection with the periphery of said clutch, andspring-pressed plungels carried by said non-rotatable clutch shifter forcooperation with the faces of said driving membersin shifting saidclutch.

6. A reversing mechanism comprising a driven shaft and driving membersloosely mounted thereon, a slidable clutch interposed between saidmembers for alternate engagement therewith, means for rotating saidclutch with said shaft, spring-pressed ballsimounted in said shaft foralternate engagement with adjacentipositioning grooves formed in saidclutch, anon-rotatable clutch shifter in threaded connection with said:clutch, and resilient means for restoring said shifterto the normalpositioniwhen moved in.- either direction by'said clutch.

T. A reversingmechanism comprising a driven shaft and oppositelyrotating driving members mounted thereon, an externally screw threadedclutch splined to said shaft for alternate engagement ,with saidmembers, means for resisting movementof said clutch when engaged witheither'member, and resilient clutch shifting meansoperatively connectedwith said screw thread for overcoming said resistance to clutchmovement.

'8. A reversing mechanism comprising a driven shaft .and oppositely,rotating driving members mounted, thereon, a clutch splined 'to saidshaft for alternate engagementwith said members, means for resistingmove ment of said clutch .when engaged with either member, a clutchshifter in threaded connection with said clutch, and resilient clutchshifting means cooperating with said shifter in overcoming saidresistance.

9. In a reversing mechanism, the combination of a driven shaft andoppositely rotating driving members mounted thereon, a clutch splined tosaid shaft for alternate engagement with said members, means for resisting movement of said clutch when engaged with either driving member,a nonrotatable clutch shifter in threaded 'connection with the peripheryof said clutch, and

resilient means-for resisting longitudinal movement of said shifter.

10. In a'reversing mechanism, a shaft rotatable. in both directions, incombination with a sleeve longitudinally movable upon the shaft androtatable therewith, one of said members being provided with a resilientretaining member, and the other with duplicate cooperating retainingmembers, and means for resiliently forcing the sleeve and shaftlongitudinally of each otheralternately first in one direction and thenin the other, whereby the duplicate retaining members will alternatelyengage the cooperative retaming member. 1

11. In a reversing mechanism, a shaft rotatable in both directions, incombination with a sleeve longitudinally movable upon the shaft androtatable therewith,'one of said members being provided with a resilientretaining member normally extending beyond the surface thereof, and theother with duplicate circumferential cooperating grooves separated byaridge, and means for resiliently forcing the sleeve and shaftlongitudinally of each other alternately first in one direction and thenin the other.

12. In a reversing mechanism, a shaft rotatable in both directionsprovlded with a resilient retaining means positioned therein,

but normally extending beyond the surface of the shaft, in combinationwith a sleeve longitudinally movable upon the shaft and rotatabletherewith, said sleeve provided with cooperating duplicatecircumferential grooves separated by a ridge, and means for resilientlypressing the sleeve alternately first in one direction and then in theother, whereby the retaining means in the shaft will alternately engagethe duplicate circumferential grooves in the sleeve.

13. In a reversing mechanism, a shaft rotatable in both directionsprovided with a retaining aperture formed therein, resilient meanswithin the retaining aperture, and a freely rotatable member mountedupon the resilient means and normally extending beyond the surface oftheshaft, in combination with a sleeve longitudinally movable upon theshaft and rotatable therewith, said sleeve rovided with cooperatingduplicate circumerential grooves separated by a ridge, and

means for resiliently pressing the sleeve alternately first in onedirection and then in the other.

l-l. in a reversing mechanism, a, shaft rotatable in both directions andhaving an opening extending therethrough in a diagoferential groovesseparated by a ridge, co-

operating with the balls, and means for re siliently pressing thesleeve. alternately first in one direction and then 3 in the other,whereby the balls carried by the shaft will alternately engage theduplicate grooves.

15. Reversing mechanism comprising a rotatable shaft provided with acompressible member normally resiliently extending be yond the surfaceof the shaft, a pair of gears loosely mounted on the shaft spaced fromeach other and each provided with clutch engaging means on the innerface, and means for rotating the gears in opposite directions, incombination with an externally threaded sleeve slidingly mounted on theshaft and rotatable therewith, said sleeve provided on its interior witha pairof circumferentially extending grooves separated by a ridge andcooperating with a resilient member carried bythe shaft, a clutchshifter in threaded engagement with the sleeve,

means for preventing the rotation of the sh? ftcr on the shaft, andresilient means compressible in each direction cooperating with theshifter, whereby as, the compressible member in the shaft mounts theridge between the grooves, the sleeve will be snapped in the oppositedirection to engage the-opposite gear, and the shaft. will thus berotated alternately first in one direction and then in the other. Y I,

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto signed my name in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

- GUSTAVE W. BERTHOLD. Witnesses:

' BERNIOE DELANEY,

CHARLES I. COBB.

